FONTANA, Calif. -- Who would have thought it would come down to this?

Two weeks to go before the Chase for the Nextel Cup commences, there is only one Junior employed by Dale Earnhardt Inc. who appears poised to make the Chase -- and his last name isn't Earnhardt.

It's DEI's other Junior, Martin Truex Jr., who enters this Sunday's Cup race at California Speedway 11th in points. The top 12 in driver points after the first 26 races of the season qualify for the Chase, which is comprised of the final 10 races.

Although Truex sits in 11th, he's only one point out of 10th and just 57 behind Clint Bowyer, who is ninth. And he's well clear of DEI teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr., who sits in 13th and 158 points behind 12th-place Kurt Busch.

All of which means that Truex plans to be mighty conservative during this Sunday's race, with his focus on surviving the race and possibly clinching a spot in the Chase -- or at least moving one step closer in that direction. The final race of the regular season will be at Richmond the following Saturday.

"Obviously you're not going to take any chances," Truex said. "You have to be smart. Winning is not the most important thing for us right now, obviously. We just need to have good, solid runs -- and I think we're more than capable of doing that."

So does Max Siegel, who as president of DEI said he was amazed to see the level of maturity Truex displayed earlier this season when the 27-year-old suddenly was thrust into a leadership role at the organization. It wasn't long after Earnhardt announced he was leaving DEI that Truex earned his first and so far only Cup win at Dover.

That began a stretch during which Truex finished in the top three in four of five races. He added another second-place finish, his second of the season, at Michigan three weeks ago and also finished sixth recently on the road course at Watkins Glen, showcasing his versatility as a driver.

But it has been his leadership within the No. 1 Chevrolet team that has been most impressive throughout, Siegel said.

"He loves to drive the car," Siegel said. "He's a very natural leader. In fact, I'm just amazed at how he's slid into a leadership role almost seamlessly. But it's his passion. He loves hunting and fishing and driving a racecar. He's just a great guy to work with."

That's a great fit since the primary sponsor for the Truex car is Bass Pro Shops and Tracker Boats. But the fact is that until Earnhardt announced he was leaving DEI and eventually signed a five-year contract to drive for Hendrick Motorsports, beginning next season, Truex was always going to be the secondary driver at DEI.

Now the driver of the No. 1 moving into the No. 1 spot before the more famous Junior has even made his way to the DEI door.

"It almost happened instantaneously," Siegel said. "He's a great teammate. The interesting thing about really great leaders is that they know how to lead and also how to be a part of the team. So each week you see him as a part of the team, just supporting the company and being a great teammate. And suddenly when the focus was on him because of Dale Jr.'s announcement, he didn't change at all. He didn't shy away from it. He wasn't afraid to kind of step up and be himself. (Continued)